Moyamoya Program

The Moyamoya Program at Boston Children’s Hospital provides the full spectrum of diagnostic, consultation, surgical and follow-up care services for children and adolescents with moyamoya. This life-threatening condition causes a slowing of the blood flow to the brain.

Our depth of experience in moyamoya

Our team of moyamoya experts collaborate with our clinicians across the hospital — from neurologists, radiologists and anesthesiologists to physical therapists, social workers and speech therapists — to devise a comprehensive treatment plan that is right for your child and family.

Because some children with moyamoya are also living with other medical conditions, like Down syndrome, sickle cell disease and neurofibromatosis, our clinicians work closely with specialists throughout the hospital to deliver care for all of our patients’ needs.

Why choose the Moyamoya Program?

The Boston Children’s Moyamoya Program is the largest center of its kind in the country — and our team is the most experienced in caring for children and adolescents with this rare condition. Our physicians played a key role in developing the American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines for management of stroke and moyamoya.

We are also the highest volume center for surgical treatment, called revascularization, in patients with moyamoya, with the shortest length of stay and best outcomes.

Innovative procedures

The only effective long-term treatment for moyamoya is surgery. In 1985, Boston Children’s neurosurgeon, R. Michael Scott, MD, developed and first performed a procedure called pial synangiosis that directly applies a healthy artery onto the affected area of a child’s brain. Since then, he and Edward Smith, MD, have used pial synangiosis to treat more than 50 children each year with moyamoya.

In addition, we also offer several other leading-edge treatment options including:

Related Clinical Services

Boston Children's Hospital has been named the #1 children's hospital in the nation by U.S. News and World Report for the fifth year in a row! It's an honor that we could not have achieved without you. On behalf of every member of our Boston Children's team, thank you for inspiring us to be bolder, dream bigger, and make the impossible possible for our patients and families.